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Generous donations funded a remodeling project at the UW Veterinary Care Small Animal Hospital, which included the creation of a small, dedicated waiting room for cats and small exotic pets and two feline-focused exam rooms with special cat beds bolted into the walls at waist level. (Photos: Nik Hawkins)
When dogs gather, they tend to get a little excited, which means a bit of barking and a flurry of tails and tongues. This is to be expected at an animal hospital as busy as UW Veterinary Care (UWVC), but it’s not always an ideal setting for feline and exotic patients. Cats, rodents, birds, and reptiles typically prefer a little more peace and quiet.
Thankfully, now there’s a separate, dedicated space for these animals to help make their visit to UWVC more pleasant. With the help of some generous donors, the hospital has converted two conference rooms into a single suite containing a waiting room specifically for cats and small exotic animals and two exam rooms with cat-friendly features.
“It really helps reduce stress for our patients, and probably our clients, something we’re always happy to do,” says Hospital Director Ruthanne Chun. “It also gives us more space to accommodate our growing caseload.”
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When it was constructed in 1983, the school’s teaching hospital was designed to accommodate between 10,000 and 12,000 patient visits per year. Now, due to ever increasing demand for UWVC’s services and specialists, the hospital accommodates around 24,000 annual visits.
“This is why donors are so vital,” says Chun “They can help us keep serving as many patients as possible and in the best ways possible.”
In the case of this project, UWVC has several donors to thank, including Melita Grunow, who was the lead donor, and Ann and Guy Nakamura, and Paula Varner, who funded the exam rooms. The Nakamuras were inspired to make their donation by the care that their dog, Trouble, received as an oncology patient at UWVC, and Varner made her gift in honor of her husband, Steve, and his love of animals.
The exam rooms themselves feature cat beds, bolted to the walls at waist level, that create safe, comfortable perches where cats can purr and nap to their hearts’ content. These, in addition to new cat perches in the UWVC feline ward, were donated by Audrey Martino in memory of her cat, Chester.
Nik Hawkins
